20100705
africanews

Gunmen in Nigeria who kidnapped 12 foreign sailors in the volatile Niger delta region have released the sailors.

The spokesman of the Nigerian Navy, David Nabaida, is quoted as saying the 12 men were put on a fishing trawler and taken into the navy's care.

Unidentified gunmen reportedly kidnapped the sailors late Friday after attacking a German cargo ship, off the Niger Delta coast. One crew member was shot during the incident.

The captured sailors included men from Germany, Lithuania, Russia, and Ukraine.

The Niger Delta is Nigeria's oil-producing region. Local militants have carried out numerous attacks on the oil industry since late 2005, while demanding that residents get a larger slice of oil revenue.

Attacks and kidnappings by the militants have cut Nigeria's oil production.